Oliver p



0. P. HIX.

GAR .GOUPLING.

No. 245.,497. Patented Aug. 9,1881.

N. nimes. Pham-bumpnpnor. wnshum rnc.

.NITE-D STATES PAT-ENT OFFICE.

OLIVER P. Htx, -oninooxnnnnuvtnrnn Asstenonfro musi-inn AND anni.soNionIvER AND GALEN n. Prix, BOTH on'SAME"PL'Aol-i.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 245,497, dated August9, 1881.

Application filed June 21, 1881.

To all lwhom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OLIVER I?. HIX, ot' Rock- 'land, of the county ofKnox, of the State of Maine, have invented a new and useful Improvementin Railway-Gar Gouplin gs and I do hereby declare the same to bedescribed in the following specification and represented in theaccompanying drawings, of which- Figure l is a top view, Fig.2 a bottomview, and Fig. 3 a horizontal section, of portions of the platforms orframes ot` two oars provided with couplings of my improved kind. Fig. 4-is a front-end view of one of said portions with its coupling. Figs. 5and 6 are hereinafter explained.

The nature of my invention is delinedin the claims as presented.

In such drawings, A and A are the platform portions, each ot' which isprovided with a sliding bunter, B, which, at its rear end, abutsagainsta slide, C. In rear ofthe said slide C is another such slide, I),they being adapted to slide in the direction of the length ot' thebunter and supported in or by suitable guides a a, by which theirmovements are. limited. A longitudinal section of one of these guides isshown in Fig. 5, with an ear, b, from each slide projecting into it.Fig. 6 is aside view of' one of the slides with its ears b I). Betweenthe two slides and extending from one to the other of them is a spiralspring, E, through which and an ear, c, projecting from the bunter aslide -rod, F, passes, such rod at its rear end being provided with ashoulder or pin, d. At its front end the slide-rod is jointed to ashackle-hook, G, which, formed as represented and provided with a hole,Z, going down through it near its outer end, extends through aguideslot, e, arranged in the front part of the platform portion.YVithin the said front part of the platform portion is a daring mouth,H, one vertical side, f, of which is stationary, the opposite sideconstituting the inner face of a catch-plate, I. This catchplate at itsouter edge is hinged or pivoted to the frame portion A and abuts againsta spring, g, which, fixed in the frame, forces the catch plate or aprojection, 7L, therefrom against a stop or shoulder, t', of the frame,all being arranged as represented.

A lever, K, fulcrumed in the frame portion A, and connected with thecatch plate I by a (No model.)

link or connecting-rod, k, and arranged as represented, serves to enablean attendant to retract the catch-plate. Next to the catch-plate is astationary abutment, L, for the head of the opposite bunter, B, to bringup against on the two cars being coupled.

Each of the platform portions A and A is provided with a sliding bunter,B, slides C and D, guides a a, spring E, slide-rod F, shacklehook G,flaring mouth H, catch -plate I and its spring g, lever K, andconnecting-rod 7c, they being arranged within such portions in manner asrepresented, from which it will be seen that each slide -rod F becomes acarrier to its shackle-hook G; also, that in coupling the two cars theshackle-hook G of each will enter into the tlaring mouth H of the otheriand press aside the catch-plate I thereof and hook upon such plate atits inner vertical edge as the catch-plate may be forced forward by itsspring. It will also be seen that the bunter of each car brings up, notagainst that of the next car, but against the stationary abutment Lthereof, the springs E yielding as the btinters come together, and thisindependently of the shackle-hooks and their carriers. Eachshackle-hook, when coupled with a catch-plate and drawn upon, can moveindependently ofthe bunter next to such catch -plate, and also can playor swing laterally.

The hole Z in each shackle-hook is to enable the hook, as occasion mayrequire, to be connected with an ordinary draw-bar having a iiarin gmouth and a link-pin to go down through the latter.

When two cars coupled together are each provided with a car-coupling ofmy improved kind, as described, they cannot easily become accidentallynncoupled, for should either shackle-hook become broken or disengagedfrom a catch-plate, or the latter become disarranged, the othershackle-hook and catch-plate will continue to keep the two cars coupled.

Uncoupling of the cars may be effected by means of their levers K,which, on being laid hold of and properly actuated, will cause the twocatch-plates to be moved out ot' engagement with the shackle-hooks, soas to admit of one car being moved away from the other.

What I claim as my invention is as follows, viz:

1. The combination of the bunter B, the

slides C and D, and spring E with the shacklehook G and its carrier F,all being arranged in the frame A and adapted thereto and to each other,substantially in the m armer and to operate :is described.

2. The combination of the stationary abut- Y ment L and the Haring mouthH and its catoliplate I and the operative mechanism of the latter-viz.,the spring g, lever K, and connection-rod k-with the bunter B, slides CD,spring E, shackle-hook G, and its carrier F, all being arranged in theplatform-frame A and adapted thereto and to each other, substantially asset forth.

3. In the said car-couplin g, the sh ackle-hook x 5 provided with thehole l arranged in it, as and for the purposel specified.

OLIVER P. HIX.

Witnesses:

R. H. EDDY, S. N. PIPER.

